My Partner Always Wants to Dig My Grave - Chapter 28

Hearing Guan Yue’s words, Si Wan raised her hand uncomfortably to cover her lips, coughing lightly a few times. Before she could explain, Guan Yue looked at her with exasperation and spoke again.

“I told you to rest for a couple more days. You’ve caught a cold from the chill.”

Because Sheng Zhen was nearby, emanating waves of coldness, Guan Yue momentarily failed to realize how absurd her words sounded.

The culprit beside them seemed amused and released Si Wan’s hand, which she had been pinching.

Si Wan unconsciously touched the spot on her face where she had been pinched; a lingering coolness remained.

Noticing that Guan Yue was about to speak again, Si Wan composed herself slightly and spoke calmly.

“I won’t go back. I don’t have a cold.”

Guan Yue wanted to retort that Si Wan was just putting on a brave face, but the walkie-talkie vibrated with an excited voice from the other end, causing both their expressions to turn serious.

“Professor, there’s a mural!”

After the exclamation, the screen quickly shifted to the wall. Under the light, the uneven surface revealed a faint, intricately carved mural covering the entire wall.

Murals left by ancient people were never simple drawings; they always contained some information, whether much or little.

Seeing this, Si Wan seemed to recall something and asked, “What’s on it?”

“A bamboo forest!”

Someone exclaimed in astonishment after getting a clear look.

Upon hearing this, unlike the excitement of the others, Si Wan remained silent, as if she had already known, her gaze fixed on the meticulously carved bamboo leaves on the screen.

The bamboo leaves fluttered and drifted, obscuring a figure.

A flicker of confusion crossed Guan Yue’s eyes, and she mused thoughtfully, “A bamboo forest? Why would a bamboo forest be carved around a flower banquet? Is there some deeper meaning?”

On the computer screen, a familiar flash of red appeared again. Si Wan abruptly stood up, her chair clattering to the floor behind her.

Everyone looked over in confusion, only to see Si Wan’s stern expression as she raised the walkie-talkie to her lips, her brow slightly furrowed, and spoke as if uncertain.

“Take a closer look. Is there someone practicing swordplay in the bamboo forest?”

Even she didn’t notice the tremor in her voice at the end, as if she were struggling to restrain something, desperate to uncover the truth.

Hearing Si Wan’s words, Sheng Zhen glanced at her with surprise before sinking into thought.

On the other end, people continued searching the mural for what Si Wan had mentioned. The screen shifted repeatedly, and Si Wan’s eyes remained glued to it, unwilling to miss a single frame, wishing she could go in and search herself.

Her clenched hands tightened further, as if the pain in her palms was the only thing keeping her awake.

Seeing her like this, Guan Yue asked with concern, “Si Wan, what did you see?”

The screen paused on a particular scene. Si Wan stared at a spot on the image and said, “I see a person. She’s looking at me.”

Her tone was utterly certain, as if the person watching her were right there.

Hearing this, Guan Yue hurried forward, wanting to cover Si Wan’s mouth, and frowned. “What nonsense are you talking about?”

With that, she signaled Song Yan to move the walkie-talkie farther away. Seeing Si Wan sidestep to avoid her hand, she could only lower her voice and issue a warning.

“Don’t you know this tomb is extremely eerie? If you scare the people below any further, they might abandon their careers entirely.”

Archaeological talent was already scarce, which was partly why they were so determined to explain the earlier events through scientific reasoning.

Si Wan wanted to explain something, but Song Yan, who was holding the walkie-talkie, seemed to have heard something and immediately rushed over, speaking excitedly.

“Professor, there really are people! There are figures in the bamboo grove mural!”

Upon hearing this, Guan Yue paused, her expression turning peculiar as she glanced at Si Wan. But for now, she had to set aside her questions for Si Wan.

“Are you certain? There are people in the painting?”

The excitement on the other end remained high. Someone with sharp eyes had spotted a vaguely human shape in a corner and exclaimed in astonishment.

“There’s another one! Although it’s not very clear, we’re sure there are two people.”

Si Wan, who had already confirmed this earlier, no longer appeared as flustered as before. Her expression gradually calmed, and no one noticed the fleeting confusion in her eyes.

Another hand covered the back of Si Wan’s, its cold temperature soothing the pain in her palm. She looked at Sheng Zhen, but Sheng Zhen merely lowered her head, her expression serious as she urged Si Wan to release her hand.

Si Wan’s lips moved as if she wanted to ask Sheng Zhen, to understand why she knew these things.

Yet, just as she was about to speak, a bitter taste rose in her throat, and she remained silent for a long moment.

“Flower banquets were luxuries only the wealthy and noble had the leisure to host. Since there are two figures in this bamboo grove, it must have been intentionally arranged by the tomb’s occupant,” Guan Yue said solemnly, though she had yet to decipher the purpose of the bamboo grove.

After a moment of contemplation, Song Yan cautiously voiced her speculation.

“Could it be a depiction of their first meeting?”

Hearing Song Yan’s guess, Guan Yue seemed to have an epiphany.

“In modern terms, a flower banquet was essentially a matchmaking event. Promising young men and unmarried noblewomen would attend. This explains why the tomb’s occupant would replicate such a banquet here, she was reminiscing, longing for it, unable to forget, and hoping to reunite there even in death.”

It was like a love letter, meticulously crafted in every detail, waiting for someone to open and read it.

Upon hearing this, Si Wan pressed her lips together, her heart pounding uncontrollably in her chest, as if stirred by something profound.

“The general’s wife created this out of nostalgia for their first meeting…” Guan Yue began, but before she could finish, Si Wan interrupted, her voice still resolute, her eyes clouded with an inscrutable complexity.

“It wasn’t their first meeting. It was on a high tower, as he returned to the capital on horseback, a distant glance, a moment that spanned eternity.”

Before Guan Yue could react, someone on the other end of the walkie-talkie exclaimed in astonishment.

“Professor Si, we could barely make out the inscriptions at the scene. How did you see them?”

On the screen, the familiar handwriting reappeared. Though the ink had faded somewhat, the hidden words of affection within each stroke could still be faintly discerned.

For some unknown reason, Si Wan felt her face grow warm, a faint blush spreading to her earlobes, which Sheng Zhen noticed, causing her to chuckle softly.

The others were still marveling at Si Wan’s keen eyesight, while Guan Yue assumed she had simply read it aloud after noticing it by chance.

At that moment, as if recalling something, Guan Yue’s expression turned serious as she spoke.

“Si Wan, considering you were recuperating earlier, I didn’t press you for details about the last tomb expedition. Since your vision is so sharp, what exactly did you see down there? And why did you ask me about the candles?”

Guan Yue had always been perceptive, and Si Wan knew she couldn’t evade the topic forever. Without further concealment, she began to explain.

“The corridor I first entered was lit with red candles, and the first tomb chamber I reached wasn’t this one with the flower banquet.”

Hearing this, Guan Yue furrowed her brows in confusion.

“Red candles? Another tomb chamber?”

Si Wan nodded, pausing briefly to recollect before speaking in a somber tone.

“That tomb chamber also had a mural, completely different from this one. After I accidentally triggered a mechanism, I discovered a spear behind the mural, and behind that, a jug of wine.”

As she finished speaking, Si Wan’s gaze inadvertently drifted toward Sheng Zhen.

Though Guan Yue’s frown remained, she couldn’t help but express amazement at Si Wan’s account.

“We’ve never encountered such craftsmanship in any ancient tomb before. To go to such lengths, what kind of tomb is this, really?”

Si Wan had no answer to her question and could only shake her head slightly. They were growing increasingly baffled by the tomb owner’s intentions.

Sheng Zhen chuckled softly, showing no signs of anger at outsiders intruding into her mausoleum. Instead, she seemed to grow prouder with each word of praise.

“Three thousand peonies bloomed within my estate. Unless I hosted a banquet, ordinary people wouldn’t even have the chance to glimpse them.”

As Si Wan opened her mouth to respond, Sheng Zhen quickly covered her ears, preempting her.

“Extravagant, extravagant, I knew that’s all you’d say.”

But this was her tomb, and everyone wishes to rest in beauty after death, especially someone from the royal family, who had always placed great importance on etiquette and appearance.

Seeing her like this, Si Wan’s lips curved into a faint, helpless smile.

“It’s beautiful,” she said.

This time, Si Wan’s response carried no criticism but rare appreciation.

Sheng Zhen froze for a moment, her hand still resting on Si Wan’s, only to find it gently held in return.

After a long pause, Sheng Zhen seemed to snap out of her daze, her smile still in place, but the glistening in her eyes betrayed her emotions, making Si Wan’s heart ache.

“Si Wan, this is the first time you’ve praised me. I always thought everything about me disappointed you.”

Hearing this, Si Wan couldn’t quite describe the emotions stirring within her. Just seeing Sheng Zhen like this filled her with an uncontrollable sorrow.

It was as if she had always owed the other something…

“Say it again, please?”

Sitting by the table, Sheng Zhen gently caressed Si Wan’s face. Her usual pride seemed to waver, replaced by a hint of pleading.

Si Wan couldn’t bear to be looked at with such an expression. Her voice was soft but carried a tone of acknowledgment for everything Sheng Zhen had done.

“It’s beautiful.”

Guan Yue nodded in agreement and added.

“This is indeed true, but didn’t you earlier think it was too extravagant? Why are you repeating ‘beautiful’ twice now?”

Si Wan didn’t hear Guan Yue’s words, her ears were filled with Sheng Zhen’s voice.

A smug expression once again spread across Sheng Zhen’s face, and she grew even bolder as she spoke to Si Wan before her.

“This princess excels in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. If you praise each of them, I’d be delighted to hear your compliments.”

Her smile was radiant, and even her pale complexion couldn’t overshadow her stunning beauty.

Listening to Sheng Zhen’s voice, the corners of Si Wan’s lips unconsciously lifted into a wider smile, like ice gradually melting under the warm sun.

At some point in the past, she had also seen Sheng Zhen like this.

But as she tried to recall more clearly, an inexplicable sense of regret welled up in her heart.

This regret felt as though, because of certain events, she had inevitably missed out on so much.

…